The present invention relates to casting two dimensional pictorial displays in transparent plastic.
Many novelty items, such as paperweights, ornaments, etc., are comprised of transparent plastic or glass having embedded therein various two and three dimensional displays flowers, shells, coins, etc. The transparent castings when fully cured form a single integral article and differentiate from those articles wherein a two dimensional display is laminated or sandwiched between flat surfaces.
For these integral castings the casting material, such as commercially available CLEAR CAST is poured into a mold and the display to be embedded is either inserted during the charging of the mold or immediately thereafter. Typically, the mold is open such that gases may escape which are generated during curing. Photographs have been embedded in such castings but the geometric configurations of such castings are limited. Typically, such two dimensional pictorial displays have only been embedded in square or rectangular castings, the final casting having planar surfaces.
With photographs, it is desirable to have the outer periphery of the photograph substantially coterminus with the casting periphery because of the size of the photograph. That is, where the casting is used as an ornament or paperweight, if the size of the casting is much larger than the actual photograph it becomes unwieldly and expensive. Also, with photographs for ascetic purposes, it is desirable to have a non-planar upper surface whereby the photograph is magnified and free of bubbles.
Previous attempts to embed a photograph in a hemisphere or dome-shaped casting have failed. Typically, the photograph is of such size that it covers substantially the entire base of the dome. The gases cannot escape during curing which results in the final casting having bubbles thus distorting the view of the photograph.
My invention relates to a method and an article produced thereby for embedding a photograph or other two dimensional visual display in an integrally formed transparent dome-shaped casting which photograph is substantially coextensive with the base of the dome.
My invention broadly includes charging a mold with casting material, the mold in the shape of an inverted dome, until substantially full; overlaying the uncured casting with a two dimensional pictorial display, the outer periphery of the representation less than the outer periphery of the casting; engaging a portion of the surface of the casting with the display; monitoring the migration of gases from the casting and based on the migration of the gases, continually overlaying the representation until it is fully engaged to the surface of the uncured casting; and subsequently, adding casting material to completely embed the photograph.